What I meant was whether I should focus my personal essay on an event or story related to my immigration or if it would be better to instead lean towards my interests and the things that make me unique (e.g., obsession w/ fungi). I guess I could do both, but at a first glance those two seem to be part of different questions in the Common App prompts.
Also, can the essay “cancel out” low stats in other areas (e.g. grades)? Even if my story is interesting, will it matter beyond the limited importance of the essays? I ask because of items like the LoRs and interviews, which I’ve heard don’t really benefit you as much as they can harm you if they’re not there.
In general, it’s perfectly respectable to finish high school with AP Calc AB, but for a CS major aiming at some reach schools whose high school offered higher math, an explanation of the reason could be useful.
There are usually two ways that this kind of information could be conveyed: First, your guidance counselor could include it in his/her counselor letter. She would say something like, “This student entered our district in 7th grade from a school in Argentina. Because of the language differences and other changes, the school decided that he should start in a math class at a level where he wouldn’t be as challenged. Because of this decision, AP Calculus AB was the highest level he could complete at our school.”
As an alternative, you could make a similar statement in the additional information section yourself. It should not sound like an excuse, but a factual explanation.
I also have the option of self-studying BC and taking the AB and BC exams simultaneously next year. I’m just worried about the courseload being heavy between that, other classes, college apps, scholarships, and EC responsibilities.
The first option is definitely probably the best in my situation, though.
Some extra context, since I can’t edit the OP: the school I’m currently attending is an “advanced” 2 year program for junior and senior year exclusively, so I did technically transfer schools midway through high school.
Hillsdale?? Why? They don’t even have a CS major - only a minor - and what they’re known for is conservatively-framed political science and classical liberal arts.
If you wanted a small liberal arts college in the upper midwest, for CS, you’d be better off at U of Minnesota Morris or Truman State. These are both public LAC’s that are very affordable for OOS students, and have solid CS departments.
Im gonna be honest, Hillsdale is only there because i found it in Collegevine while looking for targets. I found out about the right leaning through this thread so it’s not really in the list anymore. I don’t even know if I should look for LACs, tbh, since I think the CS/ Creative Writing double major would overall perform better at more STEM-focused schools.
Second question first: Academics are the most important factor for admissions to any school. An essay can’t make up for grades/scores. That said, your stats are EXCELLENT! There are a few tippy top schools that will make decisions on the most razor thin margins where the physics grade will be problematic. Please don’t think of your stats as low…ever. They are what they are, and you should be proud of them.
The fungi vs immigrant-related decision is tough without having drafts of the essay. It’s usually not recommended to have multiple main essays, but you may want to write both given that will need more essays for scholarships.
I agree with writing both this summer. See where they go. My kid did that and after review and feedback from the English teacher and college counselor in the fall, one was selected as the CA essay. The other was used for some competitive scholarship essays so it was not wasted effort. It was actually a very helpful exercise.
By the way, there are experienced CC posters who donate their time for essay review so you do have free options available if needed.
I appreciate it! I actually really like writing essays, so I’ll probably write some extra and play around with ideas before putting them through CC/ my english teacher.
I think there are some LAC’s that can provide a very strong cross-disciplinary education in CS and creative writing. You might try running the NPC for Grinnell - they’re well-endowed and often quite generous, and their academic strengths could be a good fit. (And it meets your “out of the heat” criterion!) St. Olaf is another that meets need and has strong CS and liberal arts. But it seems as if most needs-met schools aren’t going to give you enough money to meet your actual budget.
I tend to think that it’s not going to be worth it for you to try to cobble together enough scholarships and earnings for a hard-to-afford school, and come out with debt, when your NMF status gives you some really good full-ride options. They might not be exactly where you’d prefer, geographically, but there are really good options - UT Dallas, the Arizona publics (ASU Barrett and AU in Tucson), UNM, U of Tulsa… and in-state, UCF Honors.
Truman State could be one to add as a financial safety, if you would like a mid-sized public LAC (about 4000 undergrads) with colder weather. With auto-merit, the cost would be just under 20K, and they have a CS major, and a robust creative writing program that offers both a BFA and a minor. But still… if I were you and wanted that size and type of school, I’d take the full ride at Tulsa, which also has a solid CS major and a creative writing minor. Or, I’d go with one of the full-ride honors-college options at a larger flagship.
These are schools that offer majors in CS, creative writing, and philosophy, with decent numbers of students majoring in all three fields (some fields are relatively speaking…like philosophy). If the NPCs at Brown or Colby don’t look good, then don’t apply. The other schools do offer merit aid, however, including full tuition and at some, a full ride. These would be competitive opportunities rather than automatic ones, but these are some schools you may want to give some thought to:
Beloit (WI): About 1k undergrads
Brandeis (MA): About 3600 undergrads, just outside of Boston
Brown (RI) – About 7300 undergrads; need-based aid only
Colby (ME) – About 2300 undergrads; need-based aid only
DePauw (IN): About 1700 undergrads
Ohio U.: About 18k undergrads and a very well-reputed honors college; scholarships stack here
It may be obvious what the path was but not why the student was on that path. He didn’t test into a lower level in middle school, he wasn’t placed there because of lower grades, and he didn’t choose the less rigorous path because of what he thought he could handle math-wise.
He had just moved to the United States from a different country (continent even) and the school recommended that he take a step back in math in order to acclimate to the language, style of teaching, new environment, whatever.
That’s a substantially different reason for his math track than for most students.
Quick update: Professor got back to me on the Physics grade, says there’s nothing that can be done. My best hope here is probably to explain the circumstances in college apps (I had a NASA job shadowing opportunity like 20 minutes after the final, which couldn’t be moved, so I ended up rushing through it and hurting my grade. Not sure if it’s a good excuse, but It’s probably better than nothing.)
Probably going to go with the counselor comment on the math track. As much as I love math, I think I’d rather concentrate fully on AB given its infamous reputation than take both simultaneously.
Very true. Tough grade to work with, unfortunately, but I guess it isn’t too bad? I don’t think my GPA will be hit too hard, but it’s still a bit scary.